Mathieu Mirano Fall/Winter 2012 Collection

The mood Mathieu Mirano wanted you to feel was set the moment you walked into the room. Dramatic music poured in through the speakers, drumming up the bold nature of the collection. There were Chinese dragon head figures hanging from the ceiling, giving an instant hint to the designer’s inspiration, even before looking at the clothes.

There was a mixture of soft and hard, sometimes blurring the lines between the two in a single piece. Panne velvet, satin, organza, jersey, and chiffon dresses contrasted the toughness of the structured wool, leather, and python. The colors themselves were very daring, and clearly drawn from his mythical Chinese influence– with a mixture of burgundy, deep teal blue, black, silver, gold, and brown.

Long-sleeved, bolero jackets were seen over wool dresses and added the element of clean structure.

While beautiful, draped gowns gave a softer feel, still managing to incorporate touch of boldness in their designs.

Mirano also played around with a sunburst motif, integrating the design in several pieces, using leather and sequins.

While the pieces all seemed cohesive with one another, I thought the collection also had a lot of variety. There was a great amount of everything you could imagine wearing and even pieces you wish you had a gala to wear them to. The ferocious, Chinese woman warrior managed to come to life in a very fashion-forward manner. I am very impressed how nicely the collection flowed, especially from such a young designer. He’s definitely one new designer to keep an eye on.